Returning From Maternity Leave: “It feels like I haven’t been away”

Anna is a Teaching Assistant at a Learning Centre in the UK who recently returned from maternity leave and agreed to share her experiences with us.

Upon returning to work, Anna’s employer was flexible to her request for fewer hours and later start times to accommodate nursery drop-offs. But more than that, she was reassured that she would not be penalised for occasionally running late due to her parental responsibilities and told not to worry about it.

It’s brilliant to hear that Anna’s work culture is sensitive to the needs of working parents and has allowed and supported her to continue on her career path as before. Within a few months of returning to work she completed a training course, and she says that it feels like she was never away.

The main challenge for Anna has been the cost of childcare and the realities of separation for extended periods, but over time she has become more comfortable in the knowledge that her son is safe and happy at nursery.

Her top pieces of advice to new parents returning to work are:

1. It’s ok to go to work and your child will be fine - just make sure you spend time choosing the right childcare option for your family
2. Leave work at the door so you can enjoy dedicated family time and give your full attention to your child
3. Prepare and plan meals and chores in advance so that you don’t have to think about it when you get home from work

Anna says:

“When I told my work that I was pregnant, they congratulated me and made sure from that moment I was never in a situation where I felt uncomfortable. The children at the centre have behavioural issues so my permission to restrain a child if needed was immediately revoked and I was never left alone with a child. I was also offered more breaks throughout the day. I was in regular contact with our HR department who were extremely helpful and explained my maternity options to me.

During maternity leave I have very little contact with my employer. I kept in contact with close friends at work but this was all. I initiated contact with my employer to find out my return to work options at the same time I started looking for a nursery. We had a meeting to discuss my options and they were very flexible in agreeing to me coming back part-time. They initially offered me fewer days then I had in mind and were absolutely fine with me adding an extra day. When discussing nursery drop-off time, they also said I was ok to start later if needed and if I was to ever find myself running late due to dropping off at nursery this would not be frowned upon, which was a huge relief.

I went back to work after 10 months. Due to working in a school this meant I only had 4 weeks of work until the summer holidays, so I felt this eased me back in to work well.  I started back part-time and have found no difference being at work to before my maternity leave. I was worried that as it had been a whole year out of work I would feel like the ‘new person’ again but this has not been the case - it actually feels like I haven’t been away.  My career goals and aspirations haven’t changed. There are still certain training programmes I am keen to do and work are very supportive of this, having put me on one training programme already. I would like to complete my Teacher Training course at some point in the future.

At first I was worried about leaving my son at nursery for such long days but seeing how much he enjoys it there has helped. I think finding the right nursery is key. Knowing that my son is very happy where he is and having lots of fun makes me feel comfortable being back at work. However the cost of childcare takes up the majority of my wage now. If I could change one thing, it would be to have some help with childcare costs so that parents don’t have to worry about the cost when thinking about returning to work.

In terms of balancing work and home life, I am lucky to have a very helpful and supportive partner. I also try to fully leave work at work, so when I am home I can give my full attention to my son. Also I try and have dinner prepared the night before or at least ready to put on straight away. My advice to new mums returning to work would be that it is OK to be a working mother - your child will not forget you!”

Do you have a story as a working parent you would like to share with us, or can we help you tackle a specific problem with parental leave/returning to work? Please send an email to [email protected].